How did Riverside end up with a farmers market? Mostly because St. Catherine's decided not to hold its carnival this year.
That detail came up during a Planning & Zoning hearing in July. It explains a lot about what Riverside Avenue looks like this fall. The busiest shared places on the street are church parking lots, church land and a former post office. None of them is a town park. Each one is open to the neighborhood because an institution has said yes for now, and the conditions on that yes are written down.
The Market Came Because the Carnival Didn't
For many years the Old Greenwich Farmers Market set up at Living Hope Church in Old Greenwich. Then that church applied to add housing and expand its parking. That application put the market's future in doubt. Dana Lee, one of the market's original founders, went looking for a new site. She explained the choice to the commission:
"Most of the churches in town offered, but the one that made the most sense was St. Catherine's because they have that giant parking lot and will not be doing their carnival this year."
Approval came in two steps. P&Z staff first approved a tent permit for up to 14 non-consecutive days, from June 17 to September 16. The full commission then allowed the tents to go up every Wednesday through November 11, 2026, and the permit has to be renewed every year. Lee also agreed that if the carnival comes back in a future year, the market could pause for that week.
So the church's own calendar comes first. The market fits around it.
The plan the commission reviewed was built for a crowd. It called for 12 to 15 vendors and 200 to 400 visitors a week. A retired or off-duty police officer would direct cars, and all three lot entrances had to stay open for emergency vehicles. The Free Press puts the tents at 11 Riverside Avenue, with patron parking at 13 and 17. Living Greenwich visited at the start of October. It describes the market as sitting in the lot across from the Parish of St. Catherine of Siena & St. Agnes, with apple crates labeled Cortland, Empire, Macoun, Gala and McIntosh. A separate stand was piled with pumpkins, gourds and butternut squash sold by the pound. SoNo Baking Co. has bread and pastries. Mycelium Farm sells hydroponic lettuce and microgreens. Jackie's Empanadas and Wave Hill Breads appeared in the market's August coverage.
The hours have been reported two ways. Coverage of the permit and an August report say 1 to 5 p.m. Living Greenwich's October 1 piece says 2:30 to 6 p.m. Check with the market before you plan around a late pickup. Counting from today, October 4, six Wednesdays remain before the permit ends on November 11.
The same parish property has other uses this week too. Neighbor to Neighbor is running a food and essentials drive on Tuesday, October 6, at 9 a.m. at 13 Riverside Avenue. That's one parking lot hosting a food drive on Tuesday and a market on Wednesday.
St. Paul's Said Yes to Two Lots, and the Preserve Is Next
Farther along Riverside Avenue, St. Paul's Episcopal Church is dealing with the same question at a larger scale. The church owns 8.65 acres at 200 Riverside Avenue. It asked to split off two residential lots along Indian Head Road and keep about six acres for church use. An earlier plan proposed four lots. The revised plan moved both new lots outside the wetlands review area and created a separate 1.3-acre open-space parcel that contains three wetland areas. Greenwich Free Press reported the church's reason: the subdivision would support its long-term financial stability.
On September 29, Planning & Zoning approved the subdivision 5 to 0. That comes from a summary of the Greenwich Community Television recording of the meeting. The conditions cover a drainage easement, moving the church's drainage system, review of any future development, and marking any parcel that is later dedicated as open space. The town's written record of the final action and its conditions is still worth reading once it's posted.
The approval doesn't settle what happens to the land. It just sets the price for the next step. The Riverside Association and the Greenwich Land Trust want to buy the two new lots and protect them from development permanently. They currently estimate the cost at about $5.2 million, which will change once an independent appraisal is done on the subdivided lots. The project is called St. Paul's Preserve. If the purchase goes through, the Land Trust would own and care for the land. Gifts are restricted to buying the lots, related costs and future stewardship. If the deal falls through, donors will be contacted about what happens to their money. For now the association is collecting nonbinding pledges and is not taking payment. Neither campaign page lists a deadline or a running total. The partnership itself began in July 2025 with a letter of intent among the church and the two nonprofits.
Here is where each arrangement on the avenue stands as of October 4, 2026:
| Place | Who holds it | What makes it public | What it depends on |
|---|---|---|---|
| Farmers market, St. Catherine's lot | Parish of St. Catherine of Siena & St. Agnes | Tent permit for Wednesdays through Nov. 11, 2026 | Annual renewal and the parish's carnival plans |
| St. Paul's two new lots, Indian Head Road | St. Paul's Episcopal Church | Proposed purchase by the Greenwich Land Trust | Appraisal and about $5.2 million in pledges turned into gifts |
| St. Paul's 1.3-acre open-space parcel | Set aside in the subdivision plan | Condition requiring any dedicated open space to be marked | P&Z conditions approved Sept. 29 |
| Ada's, 112 Riverside Ave. | Private owners | Proposed Historic Overlay requiring the shop be preserved | A return to Planning & Zoning later in 2026 |
Ada's Would Be Saved by Zoning
The smallest building on the list has the longest history. Before Ada's Kitchen + Coffee, 112 Riverside Avenue was Riverside's post office. Ada Cantavero's family bought it in 1950, and she ran it as a penny-candy and newspaper shop. After she died in 2008, her nephew kept it going until his death in 2014. In 2016, Mike Pietrafeso opened Ada's Kitchen + Coffee there.
The current plan joins the shop to the two-family house next door at 114 Riverside Avenue. According to the Greenwich Sentinel's July 17 report, it would use a Historic Overlay to allow a garage and about 2,000 square feet of added living space next door. In exchange, the old candy and coffee shop would have to be preserved. The project was expected back before Planning & Zoning later this year. That report is the latest one available. There has been no decision since, and no reopening date.
The deal works the same way as the others on the avenue. The neighbor gets more house, and Riverside keeps its landmark because a permit requires it. If the overlay is approved, the storefront's future would rest on a zoning condition, not on whether the next café tenant does well.
Where the Avenue Gathers Next
The rest of the fall calendar runs through the same few addresses and one waterfront club:
- Tuesday, October 6, 9 a.m. Neighbor to Neighbor food and essentials drive at 13 Riverside Avenue.
- Wednesdays through November 11. Old Greenwich Farmers Market at the St. Catherine's lot.
- Saturday, October 17, evening. The Greenwich Police Department Scholarship Fund's 130th Anniversary Policeman's Ball, with black-tie dinner, dancing and an auction, at Riverside Yacht Club, 102 Club Road. Listings give both 6 and 6:30 p.m. as the start time.
- Thursday, October 22, 5:30 to 8 p.m. Save the Sound's annual meeting, "Reconnection and Resilience," also at Riverside Yacht Club. The program covers dam removal and green infrastructure, and RSVPs are requested.
- Tuesday, November 17. The Riverside Garden Club's schedule lists a holiday floral workshop at St. Paul's, 200 Riverside Avenue.
That November workshop will be held on the same church property whose two new lots are now waiting on an appraisal and a pledge drive. The market's last scheduled Wednesday under this year's permit is November 11.
On a street like this, a property's character can depend on overlays, easements and open-space conditions as much as on its millwork. If you own on or near Riverside Avenue and want a discreet, design-informed read on how preservation tools like these could shape your home's future, Kara Cugno is glad to help. Request a Private Consultation.
